Cool History Words Everyone Should Know

Jonathan J.
106 words 481 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. absolution
    the act of being formally forgiven
  2. anarchy
    a state of lawlessness and disorder
  3. anthropology
    science of the origins and social relationships of humans
  4. age
    how long something has existed
  5. agriculture
    the practice of cultivating the land or raising stock
  6. archaeology
    the branch of anthropology that studies prehistoric people
  7. architecture
    the discipline dealing with the design of fine buildings
  8. archive
    a depository containing historical records and documents
  9. artifact
    a man-made object
  10. artisan
    a skilled worker who practices some trade or handicraft
  11. autobiography
    a book or account of your own life
  12. barter
    exchange goods without involving money
  13. boycott
    refusal to have commercial dealings with some organization
  14. census
    a periodic count of the population
  15. century
    a period of 100 years
  16. city state
    a state consisting of a sovereign city
  17. civilization
    a society in an advanced state of social development
  18. clergy
    the entire class of religious officials
  19. colony
    a group of organisms of the same type living together
  20. confrontation
    discord resulting from a clash of ideas or opinions
  21. constitution
    the act of forming or establishing something
  22. culture
    all the knowledge and values shared by a society
  23. chronological
    relating to or arranged according to the order of time
  24. curator
    the custodian of a collection, as a museum or library
  25. data
    a collection of facts from which conclusions may be drawn
  26. deity
    a supernatural being worshipped as controlling the world
  27. deism
    the belief in God on the basis of reason alone
  28. democracy
    the orientation of those who favor government by the people
  29. demographic
    a statistic characterizing human populations
  30. dictator
    a ruler who is unconstrained by law
  31. diplomacy
    negotiation between nations
  32. document
    a representation of a person's thinking with symbolic marks
  33. documentary
    a film presenting the facts about a person or event
  34. domino effect
    the consequence of one event setting off a chain of similar events (like a falling domino causing a whole row of upended dominos to fall)
  35. domestic
    of or relating to the home
  36. dynasty
    a sequence of powerful leaders in the same family
  37. economics
    science dealing with the circulation of goods and services
  38. empire
    the domain ruled by a single authoritative sovereign
  39. enlightenment
    education that results in the spread of knowledge
  40. entrepreneur
    someone who organizes a business venture
  41. epoch
    a period marked by distinctive character
  42. era
    a period marked by distinctive character
  43. exile
    the act of expelling a person from their native land
  44. export
    sell or transfer abroad
  45. fossil
    the remains of a plant or animal from a past geological age
  46. heresy
    a belief that rejects the orthodox tenets of a religion
  47. hierarchy
    a series of ordered groupings within a system
  48. impeach
    bring an accusation against
  49. immigration
    movement of people into a country or area
  50. inflation
    the act of filling something with air
  51. initiative
    readiness to embark on bold new ventures
  52. import
    bring in from abroad
  53. irrigation
    the act of supplying dry land with water by artificial means
  54. isolationist
    of or relating to isolationism
  55. intolerable
    incapable of being put up with
  56. Judaical
    of or relating to or characteristic of the Jews or their culture or religion
  57. jury system
    a legal system for determining the facts at issue in a law suit
  58. legislative
    relating to a lawmaking assembly
  59. literacy
    the ability to read and write
  60. mass medium
    a technology that publicly transmits to a large audience
  61. malnutrition
    a state of poor nourishment
  62. migration
    the movement of persons from one locality to another
  63. millennium
    a span of 1000 years
  64. monotheistic
    believing that there is only one god
  65. monarchy
    autocracy governed by a ruler who usually inherits authority
  66. myth
    a traditional story serving to explain a world view
  67. nationalism
    the doctrine that your country's interests are superior
  68. neglect
    leave undone or leave out
  69. neutrality
    nonparticipation in a dispute or war
  70. nomad
    a member of a people who have no permanent home
  71. paleontology
    the earth science that studies fossil organisms
  72. pardon
    accept an excuse for
  73. patriarch
    the male head of family or tribe
  74. perspective
    a way of regarding situations or topics
  75. poll
    the counting of votes (as in an election)
  76. prehistoric
    belonging to or existing before recorded times
  77. primary
    of first rank or importance or value
  78. propaganda
    information that is spread to promote some cause
  79. province
    the territory in an administrative district of a nation
  80. ratification
    making something valid by formally confirming it
  81. reformation
    improvement in the condition of institutions or practices
  82. refugee
    an exile who flees for safety
  83. republic
    a form of government whose head of state is not a monarch
  84. research
    a seeking for knowledge
  85. revolution
    a single complete turn
  86. rural
    living in or characteristic of farming or country life
  87. schism
    division of a group into opposing factions
  88. scribe
    someone employed to make written copies of documents
  89. secular
    someone who is not a clergyman or a professional person
  90. secondary
    being of second rank or importance or value
  91. sectionalism
    excessive devotion to the interests of a particular region
  92. segregation
    the act of keeping apart
  93. social contract
    an agreement that results in the organization of society
  94. socialism
    a political theory advocating state ownership of industry
  95. statistics
    a branch of mathematics concerned with quantitative data
  96. suffrage
    a legal right to vote
  97. tariff
    a government tax on imports or exports
  98. technology
    the practical application of science to commerce or industry
  99. theocracy
    a political unit governed by a deity
  100. totalitarianism
    a form of government in which the ruler is unconstrained
  101. tribe
    a group of people with shared ancestry and customs
  102. tribune
    an ancient Roman official elected by the plebeians
  103. tyranny
    government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator
  104. urban
    relating to a city or densely populated area
  105. veto
    a vote that blocks a decision
  106. Zealot
    a member of an ancient Jewish sect in Judea in the first century who fought to the death against the Romans and who killed or persecuted Jews who collaborated with the Romans
Created on Wed Sep 21 17:57:44 EDT 2011

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